Chapter 22: Meet Gula of Gluttony (Kayla)

My name is Kayla Graven, though I'm better known as "Gula of Gluttony."I am a homunculus, born in an artificial womb through genetic engineering. My existence is the result of combining my parents' genes in a laboratory. Though I am well aware that I am inferior compared to many of my sisters, the other homunculi, it's something I've learned to accept.What truly drives me is my belief that gluttony is the most successful trait among the so-called "7 Deadly Sins," which humans mistakenly associate with wrongdoing. In truth, gluttony has given me a life of constant pleasure and satisfaction. And I relish every moment of it.I live for indulgence—whether it's at the wild raves I frequent, where I lose myself in music, drugs, and the company of my friends. We drink, smoke, and eat whatever we desire, constantly feeding our desires. Strangely, my body never changes. I don't gain weight or get intoxicated; I simply enjoy the euphoria.My circle of friends has been with me since middle school. We are girls who love to live in the moment, free from constraints. We play with boys, sometimes keeping a few at once. But I won't commit to any one of them—not yet. I want to experience everything before I make any choices.One night, my friends and I attended an illegal underground rave that had been hyped up for months. The headliner was an underground musician, a woman who shunned fame and forbade anyone from recording her performances. She preferred to stay out of the public eye, and so, we called her "Darkstar."Darkstar was rumored to have a voice and presence that rivaled, or perhaps even surpassed, any star in the mainstream music world. Despite her undeniable talent, she emitted little to no visible light, choosing to remain in the shadows.This rave was only the second time she had performed live, and it would be the first time I would ever see her. It was May 2030. A night I would never forget.The stage was soon enveloped in a thick cloud of smoke, causing the crowd to go wild. As the smoke cleared, there she was—Darkstar. But something caught me off guard: she looked almost identical to Ashley. It was as though they were twins, or maybe Darkstar was just Ashley's alter ego. I wasn't sure.Rumors had swirled about Darkstar being the same person as Ashley, but I had dismissed them. After all, Ashley is my sister, Luxuria Haniya Nadibun. But now, seeing Darkstar's face, I couldn't ignore the truth. Darkstar wasn't Haniya; she was Lilith.But I was too high to register the gravity of the situation. In fact, I found it strangely thrilling that Darkstar turned out to be Lilith herself.As she performed her unreleased hit, Darkstar threw drugs into the crowd, igniting the chaos. The audience cheered wildly."What kind of drugs are these? Are they even legal?" my friends asked, exchanging wary glances."Who cares about legality?" I replied, grinning. "Just take it!""But it could be dangerous...""You all worry too much," I said dismissively, downing the drugs myself.Soon, my friends followed suit. We laughed and danced, enjoying the high. But something was off. People in the crowd started to emit rainbow-colored lights and stars from their mouths, then passed out one by one. At least, that's what it looked like to me—the perspective of a girl completely lost in euphoria.I found it amusing. The rave grew wilder as more people fell unconscious, emitting bizarre lights from their mouths.Before long, my friends were out too, leaving me alone, still reveling in the party.When Darkstar finished her performance, she turned and locked eyes with me. Her gaze was cold, but her words were laced with something darker."You're so shameless, Gula. Truly shameless.""That was amazing, sis! I loved it!" I laughed. "Can you sing me another song?"She smiled. "I wasn't planning to perform a second song. But your resistance to intoxicants is extraordinary. As expected from a homunculus born to be a hedonist."I didn't quite grasp what she meant, my mind too fogged by the drugs, until it finally hit me.She leaned in, her voice soft and haunting. "Let me sing you a lullaby, since you're about to fall asleep anyway..."Lilith began to hum, and then softly sang:"Open your eyes, everyone dies.Nothing lasts forever in this eternal strive we call life.Screams and cries, sorrows from dawn till midnight.Close your eyes and get this misery out of your sight..."And just like that, I succumbed to the darkness.I slowly regained my senses, my mind clearing as the haze of intoxication faded. The first thing I did was touch my face. What I had initially thought were rainbows and stars—spectacular visions from the chaos around me—was, in fact, blood.I was standing in a pool of it. My surroundings were eerily still, littered with the lifeless bodies of the rave goers—my friends among them. The grim reality of the scene hit me like a punch to the gut. I screamed, the sound of my own voice seeming to pierce the silence. But the shock was too much, and I soon passed out from the overwhelming horror.Lilith truly is evil incarnate. She had known I wouldn't die from the drugs, so she targeted everyone else instead. It was a calculated, cruel choice—to use the very substances that bring me the greatest pleasure as the instrument of death. She murdered my friends, and countless others who had no part in our bitter rivalry. People who simply came to enjoy the night, only to meet a brutal, senseless end.But there was no way to seek justice. This was an underground rave, illegal in every sense. Darkstar, as she was known, was a mystery to the public. I couldn't gather any proof of Lilith's actions, and even if I could, who would believe me? She had orchestrated this massacre with such careful precision that she would get away with it. No one would hold her accountable for this heinous crime.